NIEPA Nigeria Scales Up Education Sector Planning, Cascades New UNICEF ESP Template in 3-Day Technical Training

ONDO, NIGERIA – In a major move to standardize and modernize educational administration across the country, the National Institute for Educational Planning and Administration (NIEPA NIGERIA), Ondo, has concluded an intensive, three-day in-house technical training on the new Education Sector Plan (ESP) template.

Held from May 12th to 14th, 2026 at the Institute’s headquarters, the capacity-building exercise was designed to equip technical and faculty staff with the cutting-edge skills required to implement the newly introduced UNICEF planning framework across Nigerian states.

Briefing the Institute’s New Media Officer, Bodunde Tenabe, on the strategic scope of the exercise, the NIEPA-UNICEF Desk Officer, Dr. Sunday Adegbesan, explained that the training builds upon a recent high-level collaboration involving Mr. Zulkarnain Malik, the consultant to UNICEF on education sector planning in Nigeria.

Dr. Adegbesan noted that the new template was initially pilot-tested across four states: Borno, Adamawa, Yobe, and Kaduna. During this rigorous pilot phase, seven of NIEPA’s technical staff actively participated and supported the UNICEF consultant in the field. These seven personnel have now returned to the Institute to step down this critical, hands-on knowledge to the rest of the faculty.

Highlighting the practical and extensive nature of the Institute’s field operations, Dr. Adegbesan emphasized that NIEPA has already successfully tested and deployed its expertise using similar methodologies across multiple states. “We started this specific deployment in 2023 and it is an ongoing, yearly process,” he stated. “We have worked with Borno, Yobe, Gombe, Bauchi, Kaduna, Katsina, Lagos, Cross River, Enugu, Jigawa, and Kebbi states. Our technical staff are fully equipped.”

The three-day step-down session was further enriched by the Head of the Training and Research Department, Dr. Lara Ogunsola. Leveraging her extensive background as a highly experienced UNICEF consultant, she proffered her wealth of practical expertise, guiding the technical staff through the intricacies and field applications of the new framework.

The Desk Officer also credited the visionary leadership of the Director-General, Dr. David Shofoyeke and Dr. Lara Ogunsola for laying the foundational knowledge and preparing the staff for this advanced technical transition.

“They had the previous knowledge on this, and they developed us,” Adegbesan noted. “We had a series of in-house trainings before we even went to the field. Today, by the special grace of God, the technical staff of the Institute are the ones doing this work.”

Shedding light on the critical importance of the document, Dr. Adegbesan described the Education Sector Plan as an indispensable master blueprint for any proactive government. He stressed that a well-developed ESP ensures strategic resource allocation, identifies systemic gaps, and guarantees equitable access to quality learning.

With the successful step-down of this UNICEF-backed template, NIEPA Ondo is now fully primed to assist states and local governments across the country in deploying this vital framework, driving a robust, data-driven, and unified approach to true educational reform nationwide.